” TREE” cheers for Us !

Last night , saw the cast taking to the stage for their SwanSong performance at the Royal Lyceum in Edinburgh.

A wet Monday on the 1st day of June was not going to dampen their spirits. A rather unwelcoming Lyceum experience was never going to quash their resolve …to go out on a chandelier High!

Rushed day or no…there was purpose in their PACE stride …a mood ” best described as determined”.

Bravo, brava …a touching , intelligent, professional and utterly perceptive performance reached All, across the Stalls expanse of audience, that made it along to this opening night of NTC’s Scottish Festival.

We may not have had the hordes of promenaders who graced our Wynd Home Venue shows , but we had a small band of PACE brothers and sisters , family and more familiar friends who thankfully made the trip through, to support our creative effort.

The Cast , Crew and I are grateful for this. Thank you for making our last show worthy of some attention.

Sometimes it’s really hard to pour your heart into to a piece of theatre art , to have it seen by so few people. It hurts in other ways.

Especially with a piece of theatre that has such special relevance for us all today. Not just the younger generation, but for we adults too.

Our everyday world is fast becoming isolated , in its over use of technology and social media. Fast becoming. Pointless. Apathetic towards the bigger things that truly matter.

This show tried to buck that trend, to say ” look up ” , look out , and get your life back into , albeit, a little perspective

It’s easy to switch on a screen and scroll your life away. I’m doing it now , I’m the proverbial pot calling the kettle black, …or am I?

It’s hard to feel you can do nothing about things , often too late to change who you realise you are fast becoming. Helplessly falling into a life you never expected or even wanted to be living.

Remote was always a play written to empower young people , to protect them from this ” tangled web ” we weave.

It was a protest ” against all of that ” !

The fun I’ve had with this play , this amazing cast has been one of the best times of my PACE life. Not a thing to lightly say , as there have been many great casts and fanatic shows.

But something in the way this cast ” moved me ” …something that shifted , under my rib cage ,just left of my heart, that I know will stay with me , long after this play is gone.

The journey we shared , “cliched” as that may sound to others, was honestly a roller coaster ride from start to finish . Not just because that’s what you say in these situations , but because that’s what it felt like , every moment of the way.

There are special projects in PACE , diffuclt, uncomfortable experiences…that really change you; and whilst Panto is great , Fest a hoot and Verona doubtless a challenge…Connections is pure heart. Connections is life affirming, not just for the cast , but for all those involved who make it happen.

Now before I get too sentimental…

I don’t want to make anyone unconnected ” out there” , on the end of this post , feel bad because they didn’t get to do it.

I don’t want to make anyone feel excluded or awkward because they haven’t been through it…

I just want to praise 23 young people for their sacrifice , their endeavour , their passion for a higher theatre cause. For being the best we could ever, ever have hoped for.

Occasionally we need to blow the special PACE trumpet really really Loud !

Praise and honour the ones who go the extra mile for the love of their Dramatic Art.

You understand this is not personal , but entirely personally important to me – for them!

Ours is not to reason why …ours is just TO BE. So I’m going to be really emotional about this group of young people who made this wonderful PACE play happen.

I’m going to give them the recognition they might not have fully had , but absolutely deserve.

Through this they were , no, ARE , changed forever. And that’s a big drama “cliche” to feel very PACE proud of.

You have to look at the bigger picture here and sure not everyone says they want that stuff….

But why wouldn’t you ? Why wouldn’t you want to let something so wonderful affect you, for good! To carry the lessons learned into every part, of the rest of your chosen life, beyond our Gleaming Drama Spires and Ivory Theatre towers.

And as we come to close Stef Smith’s script , file away the notes , pack up the costumes and dismantle the wooden set , ready to be recycled in another space and creative time.
We have to look now to the ongoing artistic legacy of this play.

For those that came to see REMOTE , maybe there is a tiny drama spark now ready to start a flame.

For those that were inspired by the actors , maybe hope for inclusion in similar ” acting change ” projects to come

For those that understood the deeper emotional message of the words delivered? Then …a breath taken , a distracting device less fixated on…dare I say it …a little life perspective?

We can only hope , we can only ever truly hope to make a difference with our better plays.

Mahonia bears that self same message too…

Hope

… funny how everything you strive to drama do eventually comes full circle. I seem to spend my entire Artisic Life going round in creative circles , only to come back to the same personal dramatic conclusion –

“You have to want to try to be better , to ever make a difference to your life…”

The Remote cast always tried to be better , to know more , to understand the things that first frightened them , to never give up when the going got tough , to take the ” criticism ” and to use it to their advantage , to address the body issues, the anxiety , the fear of failure, the buried shortcomings that lie in us all.

To learn emotionally that tears were not a sign of weakness but of strength , to know that real friendship comes through facing hardship together. To connect not in some fake cyber space , but in a truer reality.

23 made it to the finish line. 23 have now , I’d say , grown “up” in PACE.

You can put all the hours in here you want , you can have come here since nursery , go right through till s6 …but you’ll only be able to say that you’ve matured here , when there is not one part of you that you don’t know , inside out , back to front and wholly upside down.

Just because you attend , doesn’t mean you learn. Doesn’t mean you get what all the “fuss” is about. That is so important for you all to know.

So, in conclusion…and back to those characterful branches:

My love , for each one of you that made it through the rain, biting hail and thunderstorms of this show project.

My emotional thanks to Chloe for her complete , unwavering belief in and passion for this cast , this director’s stage madness and such an all consuming play!

My respect for you all – the 23 – that continually brought something else to the black empty SPACE we imperfectly shared.

My heart will always remember this time. The Park we call HOLI Home, our good old “Tree” that gave us solid roots to grow , stronger branches to climb and a top to aspire to reach , to be able finally to see the VIEW, from the ” cool” other side.

You know what happened to us from January to June . No need to parade the memories, that we will doubtless treasure

What is perhaps more sentimental, is your need to now decide, ” to use it” or to let it go?

Power , protest , protection come the stage whispers , let the wind of change blow out all that is old, and blow in the new ?

Shhhhhchchchchhshshshshchchchchchchcshhhhhhchcshhhhhhhh…..
X

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12 Responses to ” TREE” cheers for Us !

Can I just start by saying congratulations for putting on an amazing show last night! It was so different yet so similar from the wynd! The work you guys must have had to put in to not only perform at that standard but change a play you spent so long blocking as promenade to a play that was end on and still achieve the same standard of performance blows my mind.
I was inspired last night, I have the upmost respect for each and every single one of you as young actors... I felt proud to have known you, to have shared a stage with you at some point! I saw the future of pace and how refreshing it was!
Congratulations '23'
You were phenomenal!
Jodie x

I think it's extremely rare that you feel this way at the end of a performance, it's rare to find a cast that you completely respect and feel comfortable with, but that's what we had. I just want to say thank you for allowing me to be apart of this wonderful, wonderful play. It truly has changed me. I would say I never started from a place of complete apathy, I think that's one of the reasons I loved it so much. Remote gave me power to do something about it, to actually make a difference and to expel a lot of feelings I had for the great wide world. I'd say it's done that for everyone, as well as changing us into people and actors that we never knew we could be. What we created was not just a play, it wasn't something to sit down and watch for an hour (and a bit) and then forget about, its a thought, its a moment that stays with you, and it will stay with us forever.
As one of my final times on stage, I could not feel more honoured to have been a part of this play, and to work with all of you truly great people. It's been a pleasure, simple as. :)
Iona x

My chest is suddenly free & full."shchhh"
You get rare moments in life where you think back & smile knowing you'll never forget them.Knowing that you will carry each moment in you're heart where ever you are.
During Remote to me every rehearsals every second didn't pass by the "tick tock" of a hand but it was all moments.I can truthful say I have never felt or experienced anything such as this before.Honestly changed me.Made me more honest to myself & others.Made new friends In fact made a new family.
REmOTE was much more than just a show or Just a cast performing a play.It was everything.Life.I honestly cant justify the experience I had these past months in a comment.I could write for endless hours until the sun sets & rises again.Just want to thank everyone who was apart of it.You all changed & made my life even greater.So thank you.
See you in the next circle

REMOTE has been the most wonderful experience from start to finish and I am so grateful to have been involved.It was an absolute pleasure to share both the Wynd and the Lyceum stage with such a wonderful, inspiring group of people. Thankyou, Mhairi, for allowing me to experience the true magic of being a part of something bigger. See you all soon x

Last night was truly mesmerising! I didn't think it could beat the performance in the Wynd but it really did! Each and every one of you were so inspiring and absolutely amazing! A big well done to everyone involved!!
Oriana x

Remote has been the most stressful thing I think I have err encountered. I cried the day of the show because I wasn't "ready". I tackled the horrid body issues. However it is the best thing I have ever done also. I am proud of all of us. Despite being not kindly welcomed we welcome ourselves to the stage. Our Rouken Glen for the night. I would also love to say a huge thanks to Chloe and Mhairi. I cannot thank you enough. Everything you done for the cast the way you helped each one us to reach our greatest potential. Remote has been a huge part of my life for the 6 months or so. This may be the end of Remote per say however I will never forget the skills and teachings I learnt throughout this process. So I guess that paragraph summed up was...
Thank you Chloe and Mhairi and well done to the 23!

This has made me so proud and yet feel so sad that its over. I will forever miss the laughing the crying and the hard times that remote brought because it was all part of the journey.
"One foot then the next" This really describes the process as each rehearsal we grew and grew a little bit at a time, after bad Monday we just felt better and better and better.
I feel so amazing when I enter new scenes and monologues and I feel I finally understand why the industry is so difficult. This is because everyone's love for acting is undeniable and for performing on that stage, mesmerising is the way to describe it. On page 22 is my farewells.
Josh

This made me emotional. For the first time I realised that remote is finished. Beforehand, it almost felt like we would be doing a run this Saturday morning. God, remote didn't only enhance my performance, it enhanced me as a person. I wouldn't say the process changed me because it was always me, remote just enlightened parts of me that were hidden or I didn't know existed. What remote did change, is my life if I'm being straight to the point. "Everything seems so much smaller from up here"- one of my favourite lines and one that describes the change remote made to my life as whole. I've made strong friendships that would have seemed unlikely at the start of remote. God the start- that seems like a distant memory. So many strong working relationships too which I will carry forth into my future in pace. Thank you for your belief, patience and time spent on me, I know that would have been a struggle to begin with hehe. Shhhhhhhuuuuughhhhhhhhhsshhhhh ( See you soon ) Sophie x

Reading this has made me extremely proud. Proud on the climb we have made, as individuals but also as a cast. When I think back to the chilly month of December and the first time that I had ever heard about Remote or even thought seriously about auditioning, I almost giggle at the person that I was. But I am still me, the same Carla that howled herself on stage during the panto season, but Connections has released something inside of me. Something I never imagined was there, and I am forever thankful.
Thankyou Mhairi and Chloe for the 'up'most belief and passion you had in us, and how much you pushed and pushed us, as we aren't just a normal group of 13-18 year olds, we are so so much more.
Last night was so special, I have never felt so at ease with a group of people on stage in my life. It was the most fun I have ever had.
This has changed me, in the BIGGEST of ways, it has changed me- for good
Thankyou, everyone again. You have a special place in my heart that will be their forever. Carla x

It comes a delayed reaction that remote is finished, I am crying. I am also happy As a cast we were united and lyceum was amazing. Thanks everyone who helped make remote the best it could be. Thank you mhairi chloe so much for pushing us throughout remote. Our ups and downs are as I see it "always facing forward". I remember the first time we were in spires and we talked about remote, the broken chairs, the barricade. What a way since then. So much is different but is all the same. It has been indescribable. It feels so surreal. Thank you all for the support in making remote something I hope I will remember for a long time. It is a play that will be engraved in my soul but in a way it isnt a play something happened like something changed.
Onto the next climb. G

"A tear creeps out of Angus' eye but he quickly wipes it away." Shows how relatable this show really is; described me perfectly reading this post. Usually i would have probably let the tears flow, but I realise there is no point in tears. I should look back on remote positively because thinking about it, it gives you that sort of tingly butterfly feeling in your stomach. I think it was the way the cast and directors were all on the same page and we all felt the highs and felt the lows together. It was just absolutely wonderful. Than you mhiari and thank you chloe for choosing me to be a part of this process, it truly has changed me as a person for the better and i am forever grateful. Thank you.

Ive been putting off replying to this post for a wee while now simply because what I want to say I'm not really sure how to describe. After doing the performance on Monday night, I came home in such a weird mood- I didn't really feel like it was the end. Then over the next day it was like this gradual realisation that began to dawn me as I realised I would never do it again. Im absolutely heartbroken its over, purely because it just felt so special to me. I feel like it was this child that we nurtured and taught to grow, and have now had to let go. I feel so grateful to have been part of something so amazing. I dont think Ive ever felt closer to a cast, the way we bonded and felt every single part of the journey together was so special and I know that bond will always stay no matter how far we grow apart. I'm not being cliche when i say the process has changed me, and without it it's like there is a massive hole in my gut. Thank you for making this process so amazing, it won't ever leave me.
And lastly, mhairi :))) thank you for making this experience so special and for creating something so wonderful. You are the inspiration in my life and i am so grateful to have you.
Tears aside, I'm looking up and on to the future but remote will always be in my heart x